Refrigerator lock



April 21, 1936. L. ANDERSON l REFRIGERA'TOR lLOCK V 'I Filed septT Y4, 1954 '4 shg"cs-shefe 1 @f www,

L. ANDERSON 2,038,334

REFRIGERATOR LOCK Filed sept. 4, 1934 4 sheets-Sheet 2 April 21, 193g.

,75 I 7g L 77 o ai L. ANDERSON Apynzi; '19,35'.

f REFRIGERATOR LOCK Eiled sept. 4, 1934 4 Sheets-sheet s A1, .r .Nn

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3,2% lil/IA April 21, 1936. v 1 ANDERSON REFRIGEKRATQR LOCKl Fildfsepf. 4; 1934 4 sheets-sheet 4 15 lock-releasing means.

l Patented Apr. 2l, 1 936 PATENT OFFICE- n REFRIGERATOR LOCK Lloyd Anderson, Rockford, lll., assignor to National Lock Co., Rockford, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Application September 4, 1934, Serial No. 742,571 s claims. (ci. 292-166) i This invention relates to a locking means appropriate for a domestic refrigerator; it being understood however that the use of the invention is not intended to be restricted solely to refrigerators, since the locking meanshereln described may be applied to various structures other than refrigerators.

Among other objects the invention is intended to provide an improved locking contrivance appropriate for a domestic refrigerator and of such character that the locking and unlocking of the refrigerator door can be accomplished very conveniently and without necessitating'the use of a persons hand for manipulation of locking a provide a locking contrivance of such character that the lock mechanism is concealed; and to provide an arrangement whereby the refrigerator door when opened is free of any objectionable Iprojecting lock bolt or the like. Further objects are to provide an improved lock mechanism of a type adapted for automatic locking and operable to a release position; and to provide improved means operable4 for actuating the lock mechanism to release position. A further object is to provide a lockingcontrivance the mechanism and parts of which shall be of practicable and reliable character from the standpoint of mechanical construction. i

The invention will be described by reference vto an illustrative embodiment thereof showny in the accompanying drawings, and will be particularly pointed out and defined in the claims following the description.

In said drawings: v

Fig. 1 is a front elevation oi' a refrigerator embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken through a front corner portion of the refrigerator (on the line 2 2 of Fig. '1), this view showing the refrigerator door closed Aand locked.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the lock mechanism in release position.

Fig. 4 is an end view of the lock housing and lock bolt. A

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional elevation 'taken through the door :lamb on the line 5-5 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6 6 of Fig. 5.

5o Fig. '7 isa side elevation oi' the lock mechanism looking at the rear side thereof, but omitting the means associated with said mechanism for actu- -ating it from a foot lever.

Fig. 8 is a horizontal section taken lon the line 55 8--8 of Fig. 5.

Other objects are to beI Fig. 9 is a horizontal section taken on the line 9 9 of Fig. 5. si

Fig. 101s a top plan view of the lock bolt.

Fig. 11 is a sectional view of said lock bolt.

Fig. 12 is a detail view of a lever operative to 5 retract the lock bolt.

Fig. 13 is a rear side view of the lock mechanism with the means associated therewith whereby to actuate the same from a pedal or foot lever.

Fig. 14 is an end elevation of Fig. 13, looking 10 at the end opposite from that from which the lock bolt protrudes. Fig. 15 is a plan view of the foot lever. Fig. 16 is a side elevation of said foot lever. In the drawings, the numeral I designates a 15 refrigerator cabinet having a door 2 which swings on the hinges 3. As shown in Fig.. 2, the door in its closed position is locked by a concealed lock mechanism the lock bolt 1 of which normally projects from the door Ajamb 4 through the ljamb 20 face plate 5 into engagementcwith the door catch or keeper 8. The door is equipped with a striker 9. In the movement of the door to closed position, the striker 9 coacting with lthe lock bolt forces it backward against the resistance of its 25 spring 6, and, when the door reaches the fully closed position, the spring actuated lock bolt snaps intoA engagement with the door catch, thus automatically locking the door.

As shown in Fig. l, the door is entirely free of 30 exposed lock fittings. Moreover the lock mechanism is mounted in the corner member of the refrigerator cabinet structure which constitutes the door jamb, so that the door when open is free of any projecting lock bolt or the like that'might 35 catch in a persons clothing.

Mounted exteriorly of the refrigerator is a push bar I0, which is preferably arranged beside the door and vertically disposed and of such length that it can ,be conveniently actuated by a 4o pressure of the arm, wrist, elbow. shoulder, back, hip or knee. A slight pressure against this push lbar will cause the lock mechanism to be actuated from the position shown in Fig. 2 to the position shown in Fig. 3, thereby retracting the catch bolt appropriate means. 55

As shown in Figs. 5, 6, 8 and '9, the push bar I is rigidly attached to and carried by a pair of parallel horizontal rods I2 and I3 which are varranged one a substantial distance above the other and are guided for reciprocatory motion in .the door jamb. Said rods I2 and I3 are pivotally connected to lever arms I4 and I5 respectively which are rigidly attached to and project from a vertical rod I6 pivotally mounted in the door 10 jamb. inasmuch as the push bar I0 and. rod I6 are parallel, and connected through the parallel rods I2 and I3 and the equal lever connections I4 and I5, the movement of the push bar I0 will always be in parallelism with itself. Normally,

the push bar is in the position shown in Figs. 6

and 8. For actuating the lock mechanism to release the door, the push bar is pushed inwardly to the `position shown in Fig. 9. The means by which this movement of the push bar accomplishes the release actuation of the lock mechanism will be hereinafter described. Small springs I1 reacting between the rods I2, I3 and lever arms I4, I5 assist in maintaining the push bar in its nonmu dutward position.

The vertical rod I6 is shown having its upper end mounted in a bracket I8, while its lower end has a hole receiving a pintle I9 projecting from the housing 20 which contains the vlock mechanismiFigs. 4, 5, 6 and '7). The door jambis recessed at 2| to receive the bracket I8 and upper lever arm I4, and is recessed at 22 to receive the lock housing and lower lever arm I5. Thejamb is also longitudinally recessed at 23 to accommodate the vertical rod I6.

As shown in Fig. 5, the push bar I0 may be constructed as a corrug ted sheet metal tube having'a top plug 24, a bottom plug 25 into which y is screwed the reduced threaded end or screw extension 25 of the rod I3, and having an intermediate plug 21 into which is screwed the similar f screw. extension 28 of the rod I2. By this construction,the connections of the push bar to its carrying rods -are concealed, and there are no screws in the bar handle to become loosened with long wear and service.

` By virtue of'the'parallelism of the push bar' I0 and pivot rod i6, and the equalized connections between said push ba'r and rod provided by the upper connections I3, I5, the long push bar can be operated to eiiect the unlocking of the door by pushing against the push bar at any point, or against either' its ,upper or lower part; and, as will be apparent, it may be conveniently operated by pushing against it either with the hand or with the elbow, knee, shoulder or hip, or other part oi.' the body of the person who desires to obtain access to the refrigerator. Only a light push against the push bar is necessary to cause the unlocking door.

The lock mechanism, shown moreclearly in Figs. 2,. 3, 4 and '1, comprises the spring actuatedlock bolt 1 and a lever 30 which is connected with the lock bolt by the link 3 I. The lock bolt is separately shown in Figs. l0 and 11. In the form shown, the lock bolt comprises a head anda pair' of spaced arms 32'and 33 extending therefrom,

said arms being rigidly secured to the lock bolt head by the rivet 34 and short rivets 35. The

link `3I is pivotally connected with the lock bolt v head through the rivet 34. The lock bolt is guided for rectilinear movement in the lock housing, being so guided between a wall of the housing and a guide roller 36, and also by means of the flxed'pivot post 31 which extends through lon- I2, I4 and lower connections of the l gitudinal guide slots 38 in the arms 32 and 33 of the lock bolt. The lever 30 is shown in detail in Fig. 12. In the form shown it comprises a pair of spaced parallel lever arms joined by the central connecting post 39. Said lever is pivoted on 5 the stud or post 31, vand carries a stud or post 40 by which the link 3l is: pivotally connected with the lever. The upper arm 32 of the lock bolt has a lateral cutaway portion or recess 4I4 through which the studorv post 40 extends. This con- 10 struction per ts the lever 30 to be moved from vthe position shown in Fig. 2, to the position shown inFig. 3, in which movement the stud or post 40 carried by said lever travels in the cutaway part or recess 4I. The lower arm of the lock bolt 15 maybe similarlyformed so that both arms can be made with the same die. Said movement of the lever 30 from the position shown in Fig. 2 to the'position shown in Fig. 3 shortens the distance between 31 and 40, thereby retracting the 20 lock bolt from door locking position. In this movement there is substantially no resistance by the lock bolt actuating spring 6, because said spring encircling the link 3i acts between the pivot stud '40 and the abutment 43 formed on 25 the link. Thus in the movement of the lever the link 3|, spring 6 and abutments of said spring move asa unit, so that substantially no increased tension is imposed on the spring. Lever '30 is normally held in the position shown in Fig. 2 30 by the spring 43, shown as a coiled spring arranged around the pivot post 31 and reacting between the lock housing 'and lever.

y For actuating the lever 30, the lower push b ar carrying rod I3 is provided with a rigid arm 44 35 arranged to engage thev stud 40 which projects through an arcuate slot 45 in the top of the lock housing. The normal position of the push bar relative to said stud 40 is shown in Fig. 8. When the push bar is pushed inwardly, as shown in Fig. 40

9, the arm 44 coacting with the stud 40 pushes it to the position shown in said Fig. 9, thereby actuating the lever '30 and lock bolt to the release position shown in Fig. 3. As soon as pressure on the lock bar is released, the spring 43 returns 45 the lock mechanism to the normal position shown in Figs. 2 and 7. Such action of the spring 43 assists to return the push bar to the normal position shown in Fig. 8, since the post 40 bears against the arm'44 attached to the push bar. 50 The previously mentioned springs I1 also assist in returning the push` bar to normal position. When the lock mechanism is-in normal position, the lock bolt can be displaced by the door striker 1, as the door is moved to closed position, 55 such displacement of the lock bolt against the resistance of its spring 6 being allowed by the longitudinalv slot 46 in the link 3l. An additional means is provided whereby the lock mechanism can be actuated to release the e0 door by depressing a convenientlylocated pedal or foot lever. The mechanism for this purpose is shown more clearly in Figs. 13 to 16. As shown a bell crank lever 41 is pivoted at 48 to a rigid support 49 shown as a projecting part o f the lock o5 housing. Said bell crank lever is adapted to be actuated by the pull rod or wire 50 which passes vertically through the lock housing and through the arml 5I of the bell crank lever. A spring 52 4acting between the lock housing and the arm 5I 70 holds the bell crank lever in the normal position shown in Fig. 13. The wire orrod 50 has at its on the rod or wire 50, the bell crank lever is acuv in the opposite direction, accomplished by a downward pull of the rod or wire 50.

The pull rod or Wire is connected at its 'lower end to a foot lever 51. As shown in Figs,

15 and 16, the foot lever is fulcrumed to asupport 58 mounted in one of the refrigerator supporting legs 59. A spring-69 presses the foot lever downward, thereby maintaining an appropriate tension on the pull rod or wire. The spring 52 is stronger than the spring 69, so that the foot lever must be depressed against the resistance of spring 52 in order to actuate the. bell crank lever l1.

An adjustable connection between the pull rod or wire and the foot lever is provided by forming the lower end of the rod or wire with a screw portion which screws into the member 6l having a ball-shaped extremity 62 engaging the under side of a socket-shaped part 63 of the pressed steel foot lever. A lock nut 64 preserves the adjustment. Said ball-shaped member 62 is adapted to be engaged with the socket-shaped part 6 3 of the foot lever by inserting said ball member through the enlarged end 65 of aslot 66 arid then moving the ball member into en-l gagement with the socket-shaped( part of the foot lever.

From the foregoing,l it will be seen that the whereby the locking of the refrigerator is -automatically accomplished when the refrigerator door is slammed or pushed to closing position,

and whereby access to the refrigerator can be readily obtained without requiring the use of either hand formanipulating locking or lock releasing means.A A refrigerator equipped with the invention. in the formherein illustrated is exceedingly convenient for the housewife who, while `having both hands occupied in handling food or dishes, can cause the door to unlock and open by pressing against the push bar I 0 with her arm or elbow, or with the back of the wrist; and who, after placing articles into and taking other articles out of the refrigerator, can close the door with a movement of the foot or knee, with the effect of automatically locking it. The foot lever operated means in association with the lock mechanism aiords a further convenience, /in

enabling the door to be opened by a pressureloi the foot on the pedal. The invention contributes to pleasing appearance of the refrigerator by absence .of exposed lock liittings, and has other advantages hereinbeiore indicated.

It will be understoodvthat various changes in the details of construction and arrangement may be made without departure from 'the spirit of the invention.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: i

1. In combination with a swinging door and a door jamb, a push bar disposed longitudinally of the door jamb Vadjacent to the swinging end of the door, parallel rods rigidly attached to and projecting from said push bar and slidably mounted in the jamb,l a rod parallel withA said push liar and pivotally mounted in the jamb,

egual connections between said push barcarrying rods and said rod which is parallel with the push bar, whereby a push against the push bar at any point along its length will cause the push bar to move in parallelism with itself, a door locking mechanism mounted in the door jamb, said mechanism having a `normally protrading spring-actuated lock, said mechanism` including spring-held means associated with the lock bolt and displaceable to retract. the lock bolt from locking position. land means operable by the push bar for so displacing said means to retract the lock bolt.

2. The combination with a door jamb, of a 'latch mechanism including a spring projected latch bolt, mounted in said jamb, a vertically disposed rod rotatably mounted in said jamb,

means operable by rotative movement of said rod for retracting said bolt, a plurality of arms fixed to and projecting laterally in spaced apart. rela-- tion fromsaid rod, a plurality of rods slidably mounted in spaced relationin said jamb, the inner end of each of said rods being pivotally connected with the free end of a corresponding one of said arms and the outer end thereof projecting outwardly beyond the face of said jamb,

and a push bar disposed parallel with said rotatable rod and iixed to and carried by the projecting ends of said slide rods, whereby pressure applied to said push bar will actuate said rotatable rod to retract said bolt.

3. 'I'he combination with a door jamb, of a latch mechanism including a casing. mounted in said jamb and a spring projected latch bolt extending from-said casing, a rod rotatably mounted in said jamb with one end disposed in proximity to said casing, means operable by rotative movement of said rod for retracting said bolt, a

plurality of arms projecting in parallelism from said rod and spacedapart longitudinally thereof, a plurality of rods reciprocably mounted in said jamb in cooperative relation with said arms, the inner end of each of said reciprocable rods being pivotally connected with its corresponding arm and the outer end thereof projecting outwardly lbeyond the face of said jamb, and a push `bar se- 

